Mo Williams says he's returning to the Cavs for 'one more year'

Mo Williams, shown here partying after the Cavs' championship parade, is coming back for one more year.

(Gus Chan)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Mo Williams apparently decided to play one more season after all.

Williams, 33, who strongly considered retiring after 13 pro seasons, announced on Twitter Wednesday night that he was "coming back #onemoreyear." He's under contract with the Cavs for this season at $2.2 million.

Williams had told people close to him over the summer that he would retire, but the Cavs said they never heard that from him and were unsure if he would return.

"To do something your whole life, and then to walk away when you still have something to give, it's tough," Cavs coach Tyronn Lue told cleveland.com, commenting about Williams' return. "Mo being only 33 years old, and a year and a half ago he scored 52 points in a game -- and when you love the game so much, it's hard to walk away.

"He was probably was going through that process in his mind, what was he doing next."

That Williams had to take to Twitter to say he would play this season -- when he was, after all, under contract -- confirms the wrestling match he had with the decision.

The next step will be for the team to measure Williams' fitness to play as Cleveland's backup point guard behind Kyrie Irving.

Williams played on a bad left knee last season, and the knee was said to be one of the reasons he was considering retirement. The chance to play a role in defending the Cavs' 2016 championship is apparently worth the pain.

The other true point guard on the roster is rookie Kay Felder. The Cavs have interest in free agent Norris Cole, among others, but with Williams returning he'll most likely get the chance to show he can still play.

"With Delly being gone, right now we have Kay, and after Kay we really don't have an experienced point guard on the roster without Mo," Lue said. "The way Mo played to begin last season, as long as he's the healthy Mo, we know what he can give us. We know he can play, can score basketball, and is someone who can step in and play starter minutes. As long as he's healthy."

Williams was also the only Cav under contract who did not arrive in Santa Barbara, Calif., for the start of LeBron James' minicamp. It wasn't immediately known if Williams would join his teammates before James' camp breaks this week -- training camp starts Monday in Independence.

Williams averaged 8.2 points, 2.4 assists and shot 35 percent from deep last season in a role that diminished as the year wore on. He found his way back onto the floor when it mattered most -- in Games 6 and 7 of the NBA Finals -- when coach Tyronn Lue turned to him for spot duty as Matthew Dellavedova (who now plays for Milwaukee) struggled.

Williams, who turns 34 in December, is averaging 13.2 points, 4.9 assists, and 37.8-percent shooting from 3-point range and 87.1 percent from the foul line -- which is 23rd best in NBA history.

The key for him at this point, Lue made clear, was his health. Williams was not only hobbled by a left knee injury, but by an injured thumb, too.

"Some of it is manageable. Some of it mental," Lue said. "Mentally, I think some of it carried over because he wasn't playing. Something you love to do, and it's being taken away from you, that can be tough. Maybe he wasn't working out quite as hard as he normally does, as he was early in the season. But we know what he's capable of."